It's almost summer, and everyone here seems to be training for something. We're active in Rochester's Tour de Cure, we'll be out as a team in the Chase Corporate Challenge at RIT, and some of us are gearing up for a full or half marathon. 

I'm boarding a plane for San Francisco. A long month is behind us, and a long week in front of me. Launch Solutions is teaching and presenting and supporting clients at a significant trade show in one of the industries we serve, Photonics West.

The role of change agent is a tough one. Major organizational transitions are often accompanied by “slash and burn” practices that unintentionally sacrifice good people along the way, and no one wants to be the one doing the dirty work. Oftentimes C-level execs are brought in to get the job done and get out; other times the task is left up to HR.

The last two weeks have seen heated discussion among the industry leaders, government, and academics in optics and photonics about the future of the industry.

The Changing Face of Print

An interview with JP Midgley, CEO of Avalon Document Services

For a while, many companies were charging full-speed ahead with blinders on away from print marketing. Now, however, they are realizing that the key is not abanding print completely, but instead being more strategic about how they use it. We recently spoke with JP Midgley, CEO of Avalon Document Services, on whom we rely for many of our own and our customers' printing projects. In the following Q&A, he discusses the changing trends in printed marketing materials: what types of print collateral companies are ordering — and what types they're not. We also offer our own comments and examples throughout (in the boxes, in green).

Thinking Outside the Box

In April, we talked about some outdated marketing materials and practices that might be holding your business back. Now we’ll discuss a few ideas that are ahead of the curve. While business cards and company brochures are still staples at tradeshows and similar events, many forward-thinking businesses are getting more creative with their promotional materials.

Heeding the Signs

Hall of Shame

Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo, is making a lot of headlines in bringing remote workers back to the office. The internal (company confidential) memos are all over the web, and everyone's talking about the fallout.

'Camp' Counseling

Every company is different, but in our work with high tech companies, we have seen and helped three distinct camps or personalities: The Rain Dancers, The Skeptics, and The Gamers.

Are Mental Biases Derailing Your Corporate Strategy?

The presidential debate has spent a lot of airtime on something we businesspeople already know: corporations are people. Whatever the corporation's rights and responsibilities, success and failure comes down to the people that make up the business. And corporate strategy most often fails due to our inherent mental biases.
In a classic McKinsey report, Hidden Flaws in Strategy, Charles Roxburgh outlines the 8 human biases that drive good executives to create flawed strategies: